On Teaching
At a local metaphysical group meeting one night, I had a heated discussion on the nature of what Truth is. One of our members was clear and passionate in his knowing of what he's teaching, while I was equally clear and passionate about what I was teaching. What's interesting is we both were teaching the exact opposite concept.
While thinking about this paradox, I had a vision of what it means to be allowing of another person's opinion. I saw the story of the four blind men and the elephant unfolding. Each blind man is holding a different part of the elephant. One is saying the elephant is like a rope because he is holding the tail. The next is saying the elephant is like a wall because he is leaning on its side. Another one says it is like a tree because he has his arms around a leg. The last thinks it is like a hose, because he is holding the trunk. They were all arguing vocally, because they knew for sure they know the truth of the elephant. Indeed each of them does. But none of them knows the whole truth of the elephant.
Not only were all of those men correct in their passionate convictions, but the same is true of the people who are holding the parts of the kangaroo. The people who are aware of the parts of the human, those who know the parts of the dolphin, and those who have memorized the parts of the fish, each has something profound to share about the animal kingdom. The people who have chosen to explore plants also have a precious gift to give.
Each of us does know something with passionate conviction due to our experience. Our wisdom is absolutely necessary to the collective understanding of the whole. Each of us has a different piece of the puzzle of God and the Universe. Every time we listen to and honor the passionate other, we have an opportunity to rise to a new level of knowing. We may then see the whole from a higher place of truth. No doubt the first blind man who grabbed the elephant had a piece of truth. Each person who grabs another part adds a piece. The moment we stop to argue whether the elephant is a rope or is not a wall, we cease the exploration. We are served much better by looking to encompass the contradictory information into a broader perspective capable of explaining all we know collectively.
I am learning to be more allowing. I want to celebrate and honor each person's knowing. When I teach from my passionate conviction and another teaches from his, I have the choice to be happy even though we are both teaching something completely different. The whole is surely much greater than the sum of the parts.
Law of Attraction brings me students who are able to follow my path a little way. I help them learn to use their own guidance. They eventually diverge from my knowing and go beyond me in a way that is perfect for them. Other teachers attract students who do the same. All the time we are contributing to the consciousness where more and more is known.
Our collective knowing is vitally important. Each of us individually is also critically important because the piece we are able to bring to the table is always the final piece missing from one section of the broader puzzle. It is so frustrating when one last piece is missing, isn't it? We can work collectively to co-create a greater vision than any one of us could create alone.
I honor all paths and all teachers. I see them, in integrity and enthusiasm, knowing truths I cannot yet understand. I love the light they shed on the whole, and I clearly see someday I will realize we were all holding a piece of the puzzle necessary for the next level of solution.
My teacher, Abraham-Hicks, says we will never get it done. There is always more to want. There’s more clarity, more Truth, more peace, more love, more joy, more energy, and more passion. The way to truth is through allowing, expanding our thinking to a place of broader perspective. Let's celebrate the passionate conviction we all have come to in our integrity and clarity. Our Inner Guidance always tells us what is true for us. We are all correct. I bless the exploration of truth with joy and love.
